by HJ Welch
As if to make the situation even more unbelievable, Dair’s eyes lit up as he made another suggestion. “Hey! If we’re going for realism, do you want to take a selfie and post it on your Facebook or whatever? That would make it look a little more believable than me just showing up out of nowhere, yeah?”
His words made total sense. Yet panic flared through Robin. That felt like crossing a line in some way. Physical evidence of this sham relationship. But what did he expect would happen? If Dair was going as his date to all these things, there would be photos. People were going to talk to him. He’d promised himself he was all in for this escapade, so that meant building up the illusion of his and Dair’s relationship before they arrived back in Pine Cove.
“Great idea,” he said with the best smile he could manage. “If not somewhat nefarious. You’re good at this.”
“I prefer to think of it as resourceful,” Dair said with a wink. “Right, come on. Let’s get an adorable selfie to make everyone jealous.”
Trying not to let his hand tremble, Robin got his phone out and switched the camera setting around so they could take a picture of themselves. When he flubbed the first few, he winced, expecting Dair to get annoyed.
“Why not try angling it this way?” he suggested instead, surprising Robin. He posed patiently, making sure Robin was totally happy with the final result.
Unfortunately, Robin’s glasses made things difficult with the light reflecting off the lenses, but his contacts were somewhere in his bag. He just felt so dorky next to Dair, but if anything, Dair hugged him closer.
“Try one last time,” he murmured against Robin’s ear. “Don’t overthink it.”
So Robin just snapped a few pictures wildly. To his surprise, he got the best photo by far doing that. “Oh,” he said faintly. He genuinely loved the way he looked in that one. But even more mesmerizing was the way Dair was drawn back in the image, looking at Robin with what appeared to be such affection. He was probably just hoping Robin would hurry up and take the shot. But for a moment, Robin could pretend Dair really was his boyfriend.
Within minutes, the moment was over. They paid the check and hustled Smudge back into the truck, the mountains of the Pacific Northwest looming over them as they pulled once more onto the freeway. But Robin was captivated, editing their selfie to make sure it looked just right. Even more than that was the caption he was working on.
In the end, he put: ‘Excited to be heading home with someone so awesome by my side.’ Because it was true.
Dair just didn’t need to know how true it was.
5
DAIR
ALTHOUGH DAIR HAD LIVED in and around the Seattle area his whole life – Lakewood, Olympia, and the like – he’d never really traveled out very far east of Snoqualmie or Monroe. As they drove through the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, he wondered why the hell not. It was breathtaking.
Purply-blue mountains capped with blinding-white snow rose above the swathes of deep green pine trees that had presumably given Robin’s hometown its name. Telephone poles often followed the roads as they wound through the ups and downs of the terrain, leading them closer to the place Robin had avoided for so long.
Yet again, anger simmered under Dair’s skin, and he gripped the steering wheel slightly tighter. He didn’t want Robin to see he was having a moment of fury. Luckily, Smudge was distracting him with sloppy kisses to the face while Robin laughed and tried to keep singing along with Britney on the radio.
It was difficult to stay mad with Robin looking so light and carefree after the prospect of this reunion had made him so stressed a couple of days ago. But the reason he had denied himself this beautiful countryside and time with his family was a subconscious drive to stay the fuck away from that bastard Mac.
Dair was friends with a few guys from his unit who had escaped poverty and abusive home environments. He knew a guy whose family had been rich as sin but complete assholes. There were plenty of reasons to turn your back on the place you’d grown up in. But to be driven out, to feel like you weren’t able to return because you were unsafe…
He tightened his fingers around the wheel again, making the leather creak.
“Are you okay?” There was concern in Robin’s topaz-blue eyes as Dair glanced over at him.
“Yeah, fine,” he lied. He gave Robin a smile that was genuine, though.
Ultimately, he was there to ensure nothing happened to Robin and try and make this week go by as smoothly as possible. He was just there to run interference so Mac didn’t start anything.
He was not there to punch Mac in the face should they run into each other.
However, as they drove closer to Pine Cove, it was clear Robin was getting more anxious.
For Dair, Seattle and the surrounding towns were his only link to his parents. But it was also a stark reminder of all he’d lost. Not just his folks, but the life he’d hoped to build with Malory.
She still lived in the city as well. The chances of running into each other were extremely small, so neither of them had minded the other sticking around. But there were so many restaurants and parks and theatres they’d created memories in together. Dair didn’t so much miss her as the idea of them that that had seeped into the very brickwork of the city.
Sometimes, though, what you wanted as teenagers doesn’t last. He and Mal had been great together. But ultimately, he’d wanted kids and she didn’t, and that was just the way it was. He was glad they were still friends.
So it wasn’t like he wanted to leave Seattle or would even know where to go if he did. However, he could see why people chose to uproot themselves from their hometowns.
But Robin? From everything he and Peyton had said about his family, they sounded loving and supportive. They certainly seemed to treat Peyton as an adoptive extended member of their brood, despite having enough kids to begin with. She had gushed to Dair about how great the Coals were even before Dair had suggested this escapade.
If it wasn’t for Mac guarding his hometown like a junkyard dog, would Robin have been back long before now?
“Hey.” Dair reached over to the passenger seat and squeezed Robin’s thigh. “Are you okay?”
It was funny, but it didn’t feel strange at all to be physical with Robin. He’d appeared slightly startled when Dair had suggested taking a selfie together earlier, but then they’d had fun getting a really great shot. Maybe this whole fake boyfriend thing would be easier than Dair had imagined.
Dair removed his hand from Robin’s leg and placed it back on the wheel but glanced over to see Robin look at him and gulp. “I’m being silly. It’s just jitters. Once I get home, I’ll be fine.”
A sudden thought occurred to Dair. Was Robin embarrassed by him? Robin was super smart, so it wasn’t a leap to assume his family was well educated too. Dair had barely made it out of high school with his diploma. It had always made so much more sense to him to be elbow deep in grease and car parts or pushing his body to its limits. Books caused his head to swim.
Was Robin anxious over what his family was going to think about this guy he was supposedly dating?
Dair shifted in his seat. “I’ll do my best not to embarrass you,” he said, aware the comment was sort of out of the blue. But he felt he needed to make that promise.
He saw Robin’s head snap back to look at him from the corner of his eye. “What? Why would you – Dair. That’s nuts. You’re an ex-Marine and you’re gorgeous.”
The compliments took Dair by surprise. Or more, the fierceness with which Robin gave them. Dair’s heart warmed. It was kind of nice to know Robin felt like that. “Oh, um, thanks. But I’m not smart like you. I don’t want your family to think you’re dating a doofus.”
Robin’s cheeks had gone red and he rubbed the back of his neck, looking adorably flustered. Dair squeezed his leg again in assurance before making a turn.
“From the crazed messages and many – many – gifs I half looked at in our group chat, my family is just thrilled I’m dating
anyone,” he mumbled. “Not that – you know.” He waved his hand between them. “This is real. But they don’t ever need to know that. They worry about me. Besides, they’re going to love you. Don’t even give it a second thought. They’ll be stunned I managed to bag someone so hot. If anything, that’s what will give the game away that we’re lying.”
A slightly manic laugh bubbled up his throat. He’d gone the color of beets and was now staring determinedly out the window at the passing trees. Dair frowned, glancing between him and the road.
Several thoughts flew through his head, the first of which was that Robin had called him both hot and gorgeous in the space of a couple of minutes. Dair hadn’t thought about how it would feel to have a gay man tell him he was attractive. Especially when he hadn’t even bothered with so much as a haircut in months. He’d felt liberated not to after always having to have it short in the Marines. He kind of expected himself to freak out, but all he could feel was flattered.
He didn’t like the idea that Robin assumed they were mismatched. “Dude, not to get weird or anything, but you’re hot too. Objectively speaking, as your friend. Like, seriously cute. Don’t put yourself down.”
Robin spluttered and shook his head, determinedly petting Smudge, who was trying to nip his fingers. “You sound like Peyton.”
“Then you’re two for two and we must be right,” Dair said proudly. He was relieved to hear Robin laugh again and visibly relax. “Look – I know we’re going to stretch the truth a little and tell people we’re a couple. But I am still here as your actual friend – right?” He raised his eyebrows over at Robin. “I’m like a cheerleader and a bodyguard all rolled into one. I believe in you.”
Robin puffed out a breath. Dair could feel him looking at him for a moment before punching him lightly on the arm. “Thank you.”
Dair winked over at him. “You’re gonna nail this reunion, okay? If there’s anything I can do to ease the nerves, just shout. I’m your guy. Your cheerleader-guard…cheerguard!”
They shared a smile for as long as Dair could keep his eyes off the road. Then he concentrated on following the directions his phone was telling him. They didn’t talk much for the remainder of the drive, but Robin remained relaxed enough.
Until they pulled into his parents’ drive.
“Oh, god.” He unclipped his seat belt, but remained sitting in the car. “I guess this is it. Boyfriend time.” He gave Dair two thumbs-up and a grimace.
“Yeah.”
Dair licked his lips. For all he’d given Robin the pep talk about being awesome, he had failed to analyze his own feelings after Robin had called him gorgeous. Suddenly this felt like a much bigger deal than it had back at their apartment when they’d been getting drunk.
The only parents he’d ever been introduced to had been Malory’s. He supposed there had been buddies at school whose folks he’d met. But they’d faded into obscurity, so the experiences couldn’t have been that memorable. Malory’s family, though, had been a big deal.
Her dad was the financial director of a big law firm in Seattle, her mother an interior designer, and her older sister a paralegal. They had warmed to Dair well enough, but at family gatherings, he’d always felt like he’d been on the outside looking in.
How was Robin’s family going to receive him? The two of them might not actually have been dating, but the Coal family didn’t know that. What if they deemed a gruff mechanic unworthy of their refined, educated son?
What did it matter? He wasn’t really going to be going out with Robin once this week was through. He was just here to make sure Mac stayed away. Yet he couldn’t shake the feeling that he wanted their approval. It was important to do Robin proud and maybe give him some of that confidence he was lacking in himself right now.
So Dair plastered the best smile he could on his face as the front door swung open. “No going back now,” he said discretely to Robin through his teeth. A small middle-aged woman with bushy brown hair skipped onto the front porch and began waving frantically, as if Dair and Robin might miss her. “Your mom?” Dair guessed.
Robin made a sort of squeaking noise.
Right, game on. This was a mission, and Dair needed to focus. Before Robin could move, Dair was out of the truck, striding around the back and opening Robin’s door for him and Smudge, like his pops had taught him before his passing. Just because Mr. Epping had envisioned his son dating women didn’t mean Dair had forgotten what chivalry was.
“Oh, thanks,” Robin said faintly, hopping out of the Ranger. Smudge was on his leash and immediately began straining against it in Robin’s hand, determined to sniff every inch of this new terrain.
The Coal family home was three stories high and made entirely of a light-colored wood. Logs held up the roof over the porch and the triangular-shaped garage, and large square windows let plenty of natural light in. Dair had observed as they’d driven through the outskirts of town that many houses were situated on their own smallish plots rather than next to each other on streets. The Coal house was the same, surrounded by pine trees at the end of its own driveway about a hundred feet long. Dair inhaled deeply, filling his lungs with the rich pine scent.
He already loved it here.
“This is beautiful.”
Robin didn’t say anything as the truck door swung shut. He offered his mom a nervous smile but appeared reluctant to walk toward her.
This wasn’t the Robin Dair knew at all. Where was the guy who debated for hours about the physics of warp drive on Star Trek or thrashed Dair at Call of Duty? Where was the guy who had apparently stood up to his manager a couple of months back when he’d had tried to wrongly overrule him? Where was the sweet, fun-loving guy who skipped around the apartment to Carrie Underwood when he thought no one else was looking?
Okay. This was what Dair was here for. To be The Perfect Boyfriend and protect Robin any way he could. If that also included some surprising, last-minute nerves at seeing his family again, that was fine. Dair reached down to take Robin’s hand, squeezed it twice, then nodded toward the house.
“Right, yeah,” Robin stammered.
Smudge was desperate to meet Mrs. Coal and tugged them both toward the porch with his leash.
“Oh, Robin!” his mom cried. Her eyes looked shiny behind her glasses as she rushed down the stairs to throw her arms around her son. Dair expected him to let go of his hand, but if anything, Robin held on tighter. “You look wonderful. I swear you’ve grown. How was the drive? Have you eaten? Dinner’s on, so I hope you’re hungry. Everyone’s coming over. Oh, it’s so nice to have you back!”
Dair felt a pang in his chest. Malory’s mom had been nice enough but never as warm and open as that. It was painfully obvious how much Mrs. Coal loved her kid. Dair clung to the memories of his own mom tightly, but it scared him how much they’d faded over the last decade. He had never been away from his parents long enough for them to miss him that much. Would his mom have been this emotional to see him after several months away?
“My goodness. This must be Alasdair.” Mrs. Coal didn’t fully release Robin but kept one arm around him as she turned to look at Dair. “It’s such a pleasure to meet you, darling.”
Dair’s chest contracted. He wished he was really meeting his partner’s parents. Mrs. Coal already struck him as someone kind and welcoming. The feeling only lasted a second, but it was powerful and almost overwhelming. Then he remembered he had a job to do, so he smiled and offered his hand for her to shake.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am.”
She batted his hand away and launched her arms around his neck, standing on her tiptoes. Dair was so shocked he didn’t have time to even think about hugging her back before she let him go.
“Sorry, sorry,” she said from under her cloud of bushy brown hair.
It seemed to have doubled in size with her excitement. She yanked a hairband from around her wrist and pulled the mass into an attempt at a ponytail. Her cardigan had a bumblebee brooch on the lapel along w
ith several small holes in the wool from where she’d maybe stuck other pins in. The knees of her faded blue jeans were engrained with mud that refused to wash out.
“It’s just a bit overwhelming.” Mrs. Coal waved her hands in front of her moist eyes. “Robin has never bought a boy home, and you seem like a real gentleman. And who’s this darling?”
Poor Smudge had been dancing around, desperate for some love. So when Mrs. Coal dropped to her knees on the dry ground, he hurled himself at her, tail thwacking Dair’s leg and her shoulder as he licked all over her face.
“Steady, steady!” Dair placed his hand over Robin’s to tug at the leash. “Sorry, ma’am.”
“Why would you be sorry?” she cried as she laughed, smooshing her face into the puppy’s. “He’s a treasure. Is he yours?”
“He is,” Dair replied fondly.
“Dair rescued him,” Robin said. Dair heard the pride in his voice and it made his heart warm. “All his cats and dogs are rescued. The others came all the way from Afghanistan.”
Mrs. Coal pulled a clean tissue from inside the sleeve of her cardigan and wiped her face before standing up again. “Aren’t you an angel? We had a collie while Robin was growing up. But when she passed…” She shook herself and smiled, but her eyes behind her glasses were definitely shining. “Anyway. It’s lovely to meet you, darling. Bobbin didn’t say how handsome you were.” She winked. “Won’t you come in?”
“Mom,” Robin protested. Dair wasn’t sure whether it was in response to the pet name that had slipped out or her calling Dair handsome, but Dair enjoyed it all the same.
“Bobbin?” he asked as they trailed up the porch steps after her.
“Kill me now,” Robin moaned. But the big smile on his face suggested he perhaps didn’t mind as much as he was making out.
They left their bags in the trunk to take to the motel later. For now, Dair allowed Robin and Smudge to lead him into the house.
His first thought was that there were photos everywhere. Hanging on the wooden walls, standing up on the furniture. There was even some sort of wind chime they passed on the porch that looked like it contained several baby photos. Dair knew there were five children, but as the photos were of them all at every age possible, he was still none the wiser as to what they all looked like.